Conversations with Andrew Villarreal

Today we’d like to introduce you to Andrew Villarreal.

Hi Andrew, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I grew up in what I like to call a “little big city”. Calling my hometown a small town doesn’t really fit. I always felt like it was small enough for everyone to know each other but just big enough to feel completely lost. My parents taught me how to drive when I was around 13 or 14. Somewhere between 14 and 15, my Dad bought a funky little 1986 Toyota Cressida from a friend of his. On the top right of the bumper, a faded decal, TOYOTA OF HOLLYWOOD, whispered a secret promise of living in California one day. This car was mine, and I took driving very seriously. I loved volunteering to run small errands for my parents, and I tested the limits of how long I stayed out. How many extra streets could I take until I listened to the day’s most mind-blowing song enough times to keep it endlessly on a loop in my head? I created hundreds of routes over time. A different route for a different mood, for a different heartbreak, for a different breakthrough for a moment alone.

Driving into Hollywood for work from Tarzana is a surprisingly pleasant drive. I recently moved to Tarzana from Hollywood and have reclaimed the freedom to take Hollywood in smaller doses.  On the 101 South, roughly around half a mile before you reach the Lankershim Blvd exit is a ramp that wraps in on itself and ricochets speedy drivers onto the 101 like a carbon steel pinball. By the time I reach the ramp, I’m deeply lost in thought or song, and right as I pass the slingshot ramp, a car catapults directly at the passenger side door of my car, and I overreact like a cat that has just seen a cucumber. I swerve so hard to the left. My lunch falls onto the floor. My 45oz of double chamomile spills onto my thigh, and I can only smell burning flesh in the car now. The family in the vehicle next to me are all shooting the finger as they pass me, even the children. I’m profoundly ashamed. I vow never to do that again until the very next day when I do it again. I only do it an additional 16 or 40 more times before I train myself to stay 600 lanes away from the ramp o’ doom. But, I’m secretly resentful of my overreaction. I’d love to be like those tough, no nonsense, non-feelers. Then, all my problems would be solved. Until one day, from a safe distance, I witnessed three cars, one right after the other, swerve at the same demonic, car-heaving ramp. And that’s when I hit the divider and careened into oncoming traffic. I’m kidding! Witnessing other drivers swerve at the same nihilistic ramp suddenly validated my “overreaction”. It was, in fact, the ramp and not just me. Perhaps, maybe just for the four of us…that ramp was a menace.

That’s my story lately. Story is everywhere. My reaction to a highway nemesis. A resolute reminder that I am not alone. As an actor, I’m happily reminded that detailed stories lay the best road for characters to walk. Richly detailed stories endow characters with weapons of the heart and map out fiery paths on dark emotional landscapes of the mind. I often feel like the more stories I can collect, the more stories I have to tell. So, I hold on tight to moments in movies. Songs I love. Long drives I’ve taken. When I take on a new character, I take a long drive through my mind and stop at familiar places to pick up feelings left out at the curb. I buy gifts and swing by monuments of all my first times and last times. I wave at fading faces and dive headfirst into the unforgettable. I find joy in repeating this process over and over. Each time, I discover deeper ways to tell my story. Each time, I find alternate paths to why and where I began. My “Five Senses” kindergarten science project with my Dad. Dancing at weddings with my Mom. I got to where I am today thanks to every person who volunteered their free time at our local community theatre and every teacher who dedicated their afternoons and evenings to coaching us in speech and debate, prose and poetry, and one-act play festivals. I am where I am today, thanks to all my friends who refused to be bored and dedicated their 20s to passionately staging groundbreaking classics. I would not be here today if not for all the intimate theaters around Los Angeles and Orange County that house thousands of actors year after year. All these people I’ve met in my life are the reason I got to where I am, and they are also why I continue to figure out what’s next.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
I recently heard someone say, “If you’re everything to everyone, then you’ll be nothing to no one.” It’s true.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
My first feature film, Artificial Flowers, recently won Best Experimental Feature at the May 2023 Philadelphia Independent Film Festival. In Artificial Flowers, I play Phelix Deveraux, one of two accomplished LA-based writers who use each other to explore the darkest parts of their personalities over the course of a single evening. In June, my other film, Stefan the Vampire won the Indie Short Fest Award for Best Student Short and placed as runner-up for Best Short of the Season. The film was also a Finalist as Best Student Film at the 2023 Orlando Urban Film Festival. Stefan the Vampire follows the story of a grieving vampire experiencing his darkest night of the soul. I am grateful for recognition by the Santa Monica Theatre Guild as Best Actor in Equus (2011) and for Year’s Best Performance in Torch Song Trilogy (2016) from Stage Scene LA. I am also a proud recipient of the Top Voice and Speech Award (2011) among my graduating class at The American Academy of Dramatic Arts. My experience is what sets me apart from others. I first set foot on stage in 5th grade. Every year of my life after that revolved around a theatrical season, and I have not stopped creating work from all of that work. I’m at home on set.

Can you talk to us a bit about happiness and what makes you happy?
Process makes me happy. I am guilty of holding my breath, rushing to the results, and forgetting myself along the way. To provide you with answers to your questions, I had to reactivate my Starbucks app and wear sunglasses indoors while listening to bird chirps on YouTube. Process is like a wild time of harvest. For me, it’s become an important ritual where I voraciously watch, read, learn, feel, and think. I happily chase inspiration. I want to be moved.

Contact Info:

• Other: https://www.imdb.me/AndrewVillarreal

• Email: [email protected]

Image Credits
Nick McGee Blaine Harrington IV